From: quattro@convex.com (Marc Quattromani)
Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology
Subject: Re: Truth, Justice, and the American Fart
Message-ID: <1991Aug02.002119.11067@convex.com>
Date: 2 Aug 91 00:21:19 GMT
References: <1991Jul30.193527.32434@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> <1991Jul31.164206.5905@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> <1991Aug1.122834.32499@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>
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In article <1991Aug1.122834.32499@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> mauler@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
>In article <1991Jul31.164206.5905@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>, scasterg@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Stuart M Castergine) writes:
>>>cost; a creed that sounds vaguely fascist; etc.), and then some fanatical
>>>Christian zealot comes along, spews his "Jesus Christ is Everyone's Personal
>>>Lord And Saviour" speech (ever notice they all say the same things?), and
>> 
>> Gosh, maybe they all say the same things because they're not just
>> pulling it out of their hats. Some odd idea that truth would be
>> universal, or something terrible like that....
>> 
>
>The day I accept that there is only one Ultimate Truth, is the day <put your
>favorite "when hell freezes over" phrase here>.
>
>The mere fact that other religions besides Christianity exist points to
>multiple Ultimate Truths, since for everyone the Ultimate Truth will be
>different.  The PenUltimate Truth, maybe, but all this talk of "I'm right,
>you're wrong" regarding personal beliefs in Life, The Universe, And Everything
>is kinda moot.
>
>> -- 
>> scasterg@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu  Stuart M Castergine
>
>Leo

The mere fact that other religions besides Christianity exists points
to the likelihood that there is no ultimate truth (add caps and
underscores as necessary). How is a large body of fairly conflicting
beliefs evidence for Truth, multiple or singular?

Case in point:

  The ancient greeks in their "scientific" heyday came up with all sorts
of world cosmologies including one mentioning atoms which vaguely
sounds like modern theory unless you look at it carefully. These
cosmologies were created by very intelligent people but were all
highly contradictory. Since they nearly all seemed to shun any basis
in observation, they were pretty much completely wrong, taken as one
or as a collection. Matter is not made of four elements, motion is not
an illusion, we don't exist in some cosmic void where atoms are moved
by some cosmic "swerve" to form the world.
  Before any one jumps on my case for maligning the ancient Greeks, I
have great respect, admiration and fascination for what they did do.
  But despite the fact that they were very intelligent men, and the
fact that they had ardent followers who sincerely and fervently
believed in their teachers, they were wrong. (In case the point is
obscure: belief is not a very good indication of correctness. People
believe pretty much anything.)

  In light of these attempts and the long history of fervent beliefs
of one age landing on the philosophical trash heap of the next age,
there seems to be little evidence FOR any truth or truths. However,
there does some to be strong evidence for humanity's need for such
beliefs.  The need for a god exists but that does not mean a god (or
whatever) exists.

--
Marc Quattromani			Convex Computer Corporation
					Richardson, Texas
quattro@convex.COM